Apparatus for forming and pressing garments



July 15, 1958 v. J. SPANO 2,842,375

APPARATUS FOR FORMING AND PRESSING GARMENTS Filed April 12, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

1'? 8Y3 f) W July 15, 1958 v. J. SPANO APPARATUS FOR FORMING AND PRESSING GARMENTS Filed April 12, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR. A l/INCENT d. SPA/v0 1477' DENG Y APPARATUS FOR FQRIVE'JG AND'PRESSING GARMENTS The present invention relates to an apparatus for forming and pressing garments and, more particularly, it relates to an apparatus designed to press and shape the upper portion of a coat sleeve.

After a coat has been made by sewing together its various parts, it becomes necessary to shape the coat to its final form. This is done by subjecting the coat to a high temperature-vacuum pressing operation in which the cloth is shrunk so that the garment assumes the proper shape.

Heretofore, the shaping of the upper and outwardly disposed portion of a sleeve (or sleeve head) of a coat has been a time-consuming operation requiring the skill and experience of a highly trained operator. Extreme care must be taken that the excess cloth in the sleeve head is shrunk to the right degree, else the entire sleeve head will be completely mis-shaped and distorted. Ad-

ditionally, any excess cloth not properly shaped will wrinkle, bunch or fold. If these difliculties are to be obviated, it is essential that the excess cloth therein be taken up and shrunk in a smooth and uniform manner. In the current practice, the head of the sleeve is placed upon a pressing buck of relatively small surface and then small areas of the head of the sleeve are shaped and pressed in a series of pressing steps. During this shaping operation, the garment must be continually shifted over the buck between each pressing until all of the sleeve is shaped.

I have now devised a pair of novel pressing bucks tc be used with a garment pressing machine wherein the excess cloth in the head of the sleeve; may be properly and quickly shaped without distortion to the sleeve. In accord with my invention I employ a sleeve pressing device comprising a pair of novel upper and lower pressing members or bucks. The lower buck is stationary and the upper buck may be brought down. into engaging relation therewith in the usual manner. Each buck consists of a horizontal body portion and a smaller portion, which I call the head portion, located at one end thereof and. extending upwardly therefrom at a slight angle. The head portion of each buck conforms to the outline of the head of a sleeve. The opposing surfaces of the head portions of the bucks are respectively concaved and convexed longitudinally and transversely so that when the bucks engage, the rounded surfaces will fitin nesting relation. The opposing surfaces of, the body portions of the bucks are flat and conform generally to the outline of the lower portion of a coat sleeve. The lower buck is adapted to extend into the sleeve hole so that the sleeve head can rest on the corresponding parts of the head portion of the buck. Thus, the sleeve head can be uniformly and quickly pressed when the upper buck is brought into pressing position.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a garment pressing device employing a pair of novel pressing members adapted to press and shape a coat sleeve in a smooth and uniform manner and which can be utilized for a coat sleeve of any size.

2,842,875 Patented July 15, 1958 It is a further object of the present invention to provide a garment pressing device of the above-described character which is easy to operate and which only requires an operator of average skill and experience.

Moreover, it is an object of the present invention to provide a garment pressing device of the above-described character which reduces the amount of time necessary to shape a coat sleeve and, consequently, reduces the manufacturing cost thereof.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a garment pressing device which may be employed to press and shape parts of a coat other than the sleeve.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will become more apparent as it is described in detail below with particular reference to the accompanying drawings wherein Figure .1 is a perspective view of my .novel pressing members embodied in a conventional pressing machine;

Figure 2 'is a perspective view of my pressing members, particularly showing a coat sleeve mounted on the lower member and ready for pressing;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of both novel pressing members of the present invention;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-=4 of Figure 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5--5 of Figure 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Figure 6 is a top view in broken-away elevation of the lower pressing member.

With particular reference to Figure 1, there is shown a conventional type presser 10 havinga pedestal 11 with the usual operating pedals 12, 13, 14 and 15 located at the base of the pedestal and with a flat work table 16 mounted on top of the pedestal. A flat metal base portion 17 is disposed on the table 16. Connected; to the base portion 17 and extending upwardly therefrom is a cast iron standard 18 which supports the stationary pressing member or lower buck 19.

At the rear of the presser 10, there isprovided a pair of parallel arms 20 and 21 which carry the movable pressing member or upper buck 22. The arms 20 and 21 are fixed on rotatable shaft 23 and move therewith so that the upper buck 22 may be brought into cooperative engagement with the lower buck 19. Wet steam and dry air are brought to the upper buck 22 by conventional pipe lines.

As best seen in Figure 3, the cast iron standard 18 has along one top edge thereof a horizontal wing 24 which is integrally connected to and extends outwardly from the standard. On the opposite side of the standard 18 and extending outwardly from a top edge thereof is a further Wing 25. Unlike the wing 24, this second wing is of shorter length and extends upwardly at a slight angle. A rizn 26 of uniform height extends continuously around the periphery of wings 24 and-25 and those top edges of the standard 18 which are unconnected to the wings. Since the rim 26 is of a constant height, it will also slope upwardly Where it is joined to wing 25. The rim 26 has the general outline of a coat sleeve, the upwardly sloping part defining the sleeve head.

The lower buck 19 is disposed on and connected to rim 26 so as to form the chamber 32. The lower buck 19, which is made of cast aluminum, has a generally elongated shape and slopes upwardly at one end to conform with the upward slope ofthe wing 25 and rim 26. The side edges of the lower buck 19 are flush with the outer side edges of rim 26 so that the buck-also has the outline of a coat sleeve. In other Words, the front and rear edges of the lower buck 19 correspond, respectively, to the trailing and leading edges of the coat sleeve. The end edge of the elevated part of the buck 19 is rounded so that it defines the outline of the rounded edge of a sleeve head.

For purposes of simplicity, I shall hereafter refer to the horizontal part of the buck 19 as the body portion 27 and the upward sloping part as the head portion 28. As seen in Figures 2 and 3, the body portion 27 and the head portion 28 join along line A--A, which lies above the standard 13.

The pressing surface 29 of the body portion 27 is fiat whereas the pressing surface 30 of the head portion 28 is concave in both a longitudinal and transverse direction. These differences can be readily seen in Figures 4 and 5. The concavity in the head portion 28 begins along line AA and extends over the entire pressing surface 30.

A plurality of holes or orifices 31 are provided in and extend through the lower buck 19 to the chamber 32. These holes or orifices 31 provide outlets through which dry air may be sucked into the chamber 32 by any conventional vacuum means (not shown). The chamber 32, of course, opens into the standard 18 so that the air may be led out of the chamber.

The upper buck 22 comprises an elongated metal shell 33 made of cast aluminum and having a chamber 34 extending the length and width thereof. Apair of pipes 40 located at either end of the shell 33 admit wet steam and dry air under pressure to the chamber 34.

Like the lower buck 19, the upper buck 22 has a corresponding horizontal body portion 35 and an upwardly extending head portion 36. The pressing surface 37 of the body portion 35 is flat and the pressing surface 38 of the head portion 36 is convex in both a longitudinal and transverse direction. The curvature of the convex pressing surface 38 is the same as the curvature of concave pressing surface 30 so that when bucks 19 and 22 are brought into pressing engagement, the curved pressing surfaces 30 and 38 will assume a nesting relation. At the same time, the fiat pressing surfaces 29 and 37 will engage. The bottom of upper buck 22 is wider than the top of lower buck 19 so that its pressing surfaces will overlap the pressing surfaces of the lower buck.

A plurality of holes or orifices 39 are provided in the two pressing surfaces of the upper buck 22 and extend therethrough to the chamber 34. The wet steam and dry air admitted to the chamber 34 find their outlets through these orifices 39. There is a greater concentra- -tion of orifices 31 and 39 in the head portions 28 and 36 of both bucks 19 and 22 than in their body portions 27 and 35. Since the largest amount of cloth shrinkage will occur in the sleeve head, it is necessary to have a greater concentration of orifices 31 and 39 in this area.

The bucks 19 and 22 are covered as follows. The lower buck 19 has a fine copper wire screen 41 disposed over its pressing surfaces. A layer of flannel 42 covers the copper wire screen 41 and is in turn covered by a layer of light weight cotton cloth 43. The wire screen 41 serves to prevent the flannel 42 from being sucked into and clogging the orifices 31 when suction is applied. Both the copper wire screen 41 and cotton cloth 43 overlap the lower buck 19 and are tucked underneath the wings 24 and 25 in a conventional manner.

The upper buck 22 has a layer of very fine Monel metal screen 44 disposed adjacent to and covering its pressing surfaces. The purpose of this screen is to diffuse the steam coming from the orifices 39. If desired, several layers of screen may be employed to insure adequate diffusion. The screen 44 also serves to prevent shine on the surface of the garment being pressed. A layer of suitable lightweight cotton cloth 45' covers the wire screening 44.

If desired, flannel may also be used in conjunction with the layer of cotton fabric 45 or several layers of light weight cotton cloth may be employed. The desired arrangement of the coverings, of course, is well known in the art and not germane to my present invention. However, it should be noted that the screens 41 and 44 must be sufliciently flexible so that they are able to conform to the curved pressing surfaces 28 and 36 of the bucks 19 and 22 as the bucks are brought into engage ment with each other.

In operation, a garment sleeve is placed on the lower buck 19, as shown in Figure 2, with the body portion 27 of the buck extending into the sleeve hole and with the sleeve head of the garment lying on the head portion 23 of the buck. The lower buck 19 is of a minimum size so that it will always fit into a garment sleeve regardless of the size of the sleeve. The upper buck 22 is then brought downwardly into engagement with the lower buck 19, locked into position, and wet steam applied to the garment. Next, dry air is applied to the garment and then the upper buck 22 is released. When the lower and upper bucks 19 and 22 are in engagement, the convex pressing surface 38 will force the excess cloth of the sleeve head into the concavity of the pressing surface 30. The excess cloth of the sleeve head will then lie smoothly and uniformly on the pressing surface 30. Thus, there is no opportunity for the excess cloth to wrinkle or crease. Instead, it will shrink uniformly.

In those cases where the sleeve head is of the same size as the head portion 28 of the lower buck 19, the sleeve may be shaped in one or two pressings because the leading and trailing edges of the sleeve will overlie the corresponding edges of the buck. However, if the sleeve should be larger, then several more pressing steps may be required. In such event, the sleeve is mounted on the lower buck 19 with its leading edge conforming to the leading edge of the buck. Then the portion of the sleeve on the buck is shaped. After this is completed, the sleeve is shifted until the trailing edge conforms to the trailing edge of the buck 19. Again, the sleeve is shaped.

Although my novel device is primarily designed for use with sleeve heads, it may also be employed to press .and shape other portions of a garment. For example, the flat portions of the bucks may be used to shape lapels and other areas of the garment which may be fiat pressed.

While my invention has been described in detail and shown with respect to the accompanying drawings, it is not to be limited to such details, since many changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the scope and spirit thereof. For example, the head portion of the upper buck could have a concave pressing surface and the head portion of the lower buck could have a convex pressing surface. Hence, it is desired to cover any and all forms and modifications of the invention which may come within the language and scope of any one or more of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A device for forming and pressing a garment sleeve including an elongated and stationary lower pressing buck, the upper surface of said buck being in part horizontal and fiat and in part curved and inclined upwardly, said upper surface having the general outline of a garment sleeve, an elongated and movable upper pressing buck, the lower surface of said movable buck being in part horizontal and flat and in part curved and inclined upwardly, means for moving said upper buck so that the lower surface thereof can be brought into engagement with the upper surface of said lower buck, said inclined surfaces of said bucks being curved longitudinally and transversely thereof, said inclined surface of said lower buck being concave and said inclined surface of said upper buck being convex, said inclined surfaces adapted to nest when said bucks engage, a plurality of orifices distributed over said upper and lower surfaces, the orifices in said inclined surfaces being in greater concentration than the orifices in said horizontal surfaces, means for applying wet steam and dry air respectively to said movable buck and means for applying suction to said stationary buck, said lower buck adapted to carry a garment sleeve thereon and in such manner that the sleeve head lies on said inclined surface and so that the horizontal and flat surface thereof extends into the sleeve hole of said garment sleeve.

2. A device for forming and pressing a garment sleeve previously affixed to the body of the garment including an elongated and stationary pressing buck, the upper surface of said buck being in part horizontal and flat and in part curved and inclined, said upper surface having the general outline of a garment sleeve, said curved and inclined surface corresponding to the head of a garment sleeve, an elongated and movable pressing buck, the lower surface of said movable buck being in part horizontal and flat and in part curved and inclined, means for moving said movable buck so that the lower surface thereof can be brought into engagement with the upper surface of said stationary buck, said inclined surface of said stationary buck being curved inwardly, said inclined surface of said movable buck being curved outwardly, both said inclined surfaces adapted to nest when said bucks engage, a plurality of orifices distributed over said upper and lower surfaces, the orifices in said inclined surfaces being in greater concentration than the orifices in said horizontal surfaces, means for applying wet steam and dry air respectiveiy to said movable buck, and means for applying suction to said stationary buck, said stationary buck being of such size that when a garment sleeve is placed thereon with its sleeve head overlying the curved and inclined surface thereof the horizontal and fiat surface thereof can extend into the sleeve hole of the garment sleeve and support the same.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,562,246 Nelson Nov. 17, 1925 1,597,707 Andree Aug. 31, 1926 2,039,788 Freda et a1. May 5, 1936 2,058,953 Coleman Oct. 27, 1936 2,251,091 Wiegman July 29, 1941 2,258,100 Reiss et al. Oct. 7, 1941 2,261,894 Zammitti Nov. 4, 1941 2,307,370 Hale Jan. 5, 1943 

